i. The four-day long mega science expo, India International Science Festival (IISF-2018) concluded in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. IISF-2018 witnessed a footfall of more than 10 lakh people and more than 22 thousand registrations, the highest in its four-year history making it the largest festival of its kind in Asia.

ii. IISF was inaugurated by the President Ram Nath Kovind. IISF 2018 also saw two major Guinness World Records being made one of which was a World Record successful attempt to “isolate DNA” by 550 students from class 8th to 10th standard. IISF-2018 with its focal theme “Science for Transformation” had more than 23 special events in its 4th edition.

IISF 2017 was held in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

2. India Signs Key Agreements With Tajikistan

i. President Ram Nath Kovind had a meeting with his Tajikistan counterpart Mr. Emomali Rahmon in Dushanbe. On this occasion, both countries signed MoUs in various fields including political relations, strategic research, agriculture, renewable energy, traditional medicine, space technology, youth affairs, Culture and Disaster Management.

ii. The President held bilateral level talks his Tajikistan counterpart Emomali Rahmon. Indian grant of 20 million US dollars was announced for Tajikistan to finance development projects. Several other key bilateral pacts were also signed.

Tajikistan Capital: Dushanbe, Currencies: Tajikistani somoni, Ruble.

3. Minister of State for Commerce Attends India–West Africa Conclave in Nigeria

i. Minister of State for Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution, C. R. Chaudhary led the Indian delegation to the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)- EXIM Bank, Regional Conclave on India-West Africa Project Partnership being held in Abuja, Nigeria.

ii. The Conclave is a two-day event with the focus on business deliberations, Business to Government (B2G) and Business to Business (B2B) engagements.

Nigeria Capital: Abuja, Currency: Nigerian naira.

4. Pakistan Test-Fires Nuclear-Capable Ghauri Ballistic Missile

i. Pakistan has successfully test-fired Ghauri ballistic missile capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads up to a distance of 1,300 kilometres.

ii. The launch was conducted by Army Strategic Forces Command and was aimed at testing the operational and technical readiness.

Pakistan PM- Imran Khan, Currency- Pakistani Rupee

5. IMF Projects India’s Growth At 7.3% In 2018 and 7.4% In 2019

i. As per the IMF’s latest report, India is projected to grow at 7.3% in 2018 and 7.4% in 2019. The report predicted India to regain the tag of the world’s fastest-growing major economy this year, crossing China with more than 0.7 percentage points.

ii. In China, growth is projected to moderate from 6.9 per cent in 2017 to 6.6% in 2018 and 6.2 % in 2019. In 2017, India had clocked a 6.7% growth rate.

i. Google will shut down Google+ for consumer use over the next 10 months after a bug exposed the personal data of up to 5 lakh users. Google stated that it discovered and immediately patched the bug in March 2018 but found “no evidence” that any data was actually misused.

ii. According to Google, Google+ currently has “low usage and engagement” and that 90% of Google+ user sessions last less than 5 seconds. Still, the company plans to keep the service alive for enterprise customers who use it to facilitate conversation among co-workers.

Google CEO-Sundar Pichai, Parent company- Alphabet Inc.

Google was recently displaced by Apple to become the world’s top brand.

i. The Centre in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India has decided to issue Sovereign Gold Bonds 2018-19. The Sovereign Gold Bonds will be issued every month from October to February 2019.

ii. The 2018-19 Series II tranche will be issued on 23rd of October and the period of submission is 15th to 19th of October. The Bonds will be sold through banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited, designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges National Stock Exchange of India Limited and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited.

i. National Housing Bank (NHB) has decided to increase the Refinance Limit from Rs. 24,000 crore to Rs.30,000 crore for the Current Year (July 2018-June 2019) towards refinancing eligible institutions. Now, eligible Housing Finance Companies & Other entities will have increased availability of funds.

ii. Till date, Rs.8835 crore has been sanctioned. This refinancing is a credit flow to Housing Finance Companies & other Institutions.

The Committee of Secretaries considered’ the recommendation and set up the High-Level Group under the Chairmanship of Dr. C. Rangarajan, the then Deputy Governor, RBI to examine the proposal and recommended the setting up of National Housing Bank as an autonomous housing finance institution.

NHB was set up on July 9, 1988, under the National Housing Bank Act, 1987.

i. World Post Day is celebrated each year on 9 October, the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss Capital, Bern.

ii. The theme selected for the 2018 competition is: “Imagine you are a letter travelling through time. What message do you wish to convey to your readers?”

10. Asian Para Games 2018: India Bags 11 Medals, 3 Golds

i. Javelin thrower Sandeep Chaudhary produced a stunning world record effort as India bagged 11 medals, including three gold, at the Asian Para Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.

ii. Chaudhary clinched India’s first gold of the Games in the men’s category before middle distance runner Raju Rakshitha in women’s 1500 meters and swimmer Jadhav Suyash Narayan in men’s 50-meter butterfly added the yellow metals later on the second day of competitions.

Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) confirmed that Hangzhou in China will host the fourth edition of Asian Para Games in 2022.

i. Weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga has become India’s first-ever gold medallist in the history of Youth Olympic Games (YOG). The 15-year-old achieved the feat by lifting a total weight of 274 kg in the men’s 62 kg category at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

ii. Jeremy’s personal best until the Buenos Aires lift was of 273 kg (snatch+clean and jerk), which he achieved during an event at NIS Patiala.

i. 16-Year-old Thangjam Tababi Devi became India’s first judo medallist at the Olympic level, claiming a silver at the ongoing Youth Games.ii. She was defeated by Venezuela’s Maria Giminez in the finals of the women’s 44kg category in Buenos Aires, Argentina.Tababi Devi hails from Manipur. India has never won an Olympic medal in judo either at the senior or the youth level.